Yes, it can definitely snow in Denver in September. Here’s how early
DENVER (KDVR) — After one of the hottest summers in Denver weather history, snow in September is looking unlikely. But it’s happened before, even as recently as 2020.
September is the fourth-warmest month of the year in Denver, according to the National Weather Service. The month brings temperatures in the upper 90s and even over 100 degrees in recent years.
Denver records second hottest summer in history
The beginning of September marks the first day of meteorological fall, but there are still a few weeks left of astrological summer until the autumnal equinox on Sept. 22. September temperatures for Denver range from an average low of 48.3 degrees to an average high of 78.5 degrees.
Additionally, the average first freeze arrives in Denver on Oct. 7.
That being said, it has snowed as early as Sept. 3 in Denver. On that day in 1961, according to the National Weather Service, 4.2 inches of snowfall was recorded at the Central Park/Stapleton Airport. That’s 7.5% of the average yearly snowfall of 56 inches for that area of Denver, according to the NWS.
How often does Denver get heavy snow?
In 2020, an inch of snow fell at the Denver International Airport on Sept. 8, which is the second-earliest snowfall ever recorded by the NWS in Denver. This day also marked the earliest first freeze ever recorded in Denver, which is particularly notable given that 101 degrees was recorded just three days earlier.
Since the NWS began keeping records in 1882, it has snowed in September 46 times.
Here are the 10 earliest measurable snowfall dates since 1882 in Denver:
Sept. 3, 1961: 4.2 inches
Sept. 8, 2020: 1 inch
Sept. 8, 1962: 0.7 inch
Sept. 12, 1989: 2.3 inches
Sept. 12, 1974: 1.8 inches
Sept. 13, 1993: 5.4 inches
Sept. 16, 1971: 2.7 inches
Sept. 19, 1955: 0.2 inches
Sept. 20, 1995: 4.7 inches
Sept. 20, 1965: 3.5 inches
On average, the average first day of measurable snowfall comes on Oct. 18, according to the NWS. Last year, the first snow of the season fell on Oct. 28.
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In the last decade, the first freeze has typically arrived in Denver in the first few weeks of October. While it’s unlikely that snow will fall or temperatures will fall to the point of freezing this month, anything is possible with Colorado’s unpredictable weather.
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